Rangers-Panthers in review

The most hyped game they have played in years, if not decades, coming up next, a bad loss in the game previous. I know some of you guys worried about this being a trap game during the live chat yesterday and we talked briefly about how this team doesn’t let stuff like that get in the way. They’re all business.

They might have a losing streak at some point. They probably will. They almost certainly will. But they sure have been great at not letting a loss turn into another one and another one. Or at letting a potential distraction become one.

Pretty special.

Thoughts:

1) When they talk about moving your feet, using your legs, they should show video of Carl Hagelin. Because not just fast guys can do what he did on the first goal … which was to move the puck and drive up ice and directly to the net. Even slower guys can do that. And not enough do. Using one’s speed is a matter of skating hard when you don’t have the puck. Hagelin gets that. As I said last week or the week before, get that No. 62 off the kid’s back and give him a real number. Maybe the No. 12 he wore in college. Or 16?

2) You could see Brad Richards skating better even before the early goal … also, he’s got a great wrist shot and the reason he missed the net a lot is that he picks corners. He sure did on the goal. That 3-0 could have been more in the first period.

3) I like the way Henrik Lundqvist stared down the goal judge after the light went on on the shot that hit the crossbar. At least twice after video review, he glared back and shook his head. Actually, with every goal being reviewed in Toronto, goal judges are pretty much like pay phones. Obsolete. And I’m not sure Lundqvist deserved the hat (I usually disagree with the choice) but even in a game the Rangers dominated, Lundqvist was extraordinary.

4) If Brandon Dubinsky is really finding his game — and I’ve been thinking he is for a while — that would be like getting a 20-goal scorer in a trade at this stage of the season.

5) I’m really liking the de-pansification of the game lately. The referees seem to have made the adjustment from the ridiculous way they were calling games earlier in the season.

6) Michael Del Zotto did rake Tomas Kopecky’s hat off, and maybe even caught him in the mug with his stick, but that sucker punch is unacceptable and could bring a suspension. Though I don’t understand any more what is and isn’t a suspension in the new NHL HQ. Mike Rupp could also get spanked for jumping Kopecky, though, as John Tortorella said, he got what he deserved. Given that beat-down and the Bahama Bomba’s elbow earlier in the year, I expect Thursday’s rematch to be frisky.

7) Del Zaster was darn good again, wasn’t he?

8) Interesting play there, after the icing, with the Rangers already having burned their timeout. To buy a few extra seconds, Richards let Ruslan Fedotenko line up for the D-zone draw and purposely get thrown out, then Richards ambled over and took the draw. Clever. Must not have been drawn up by the coach.

9) I don’t even know what to say about Sean Avery anymore … except there was more to the Buffalo incident than has been reported — I don’t know why more wasn’t reported — and apparently that was the last straw. Because I thought he should have played in those divisional games, and he didn’t get a sniff. Though had he played and been a factor in those games, it would have been a lot more difficult to get rid of him, and the reaction to him being waived again would have been more loud and angry than it was.

10) To honor the Flyers hosting the Winter Classic, the Giants will be wearing Flyers jerseys against the Cowboys Sunday night. Eli Manning, Victor Cruz and Brandon Jacobs are going to wear the nameplates “GIROUX,” “JAGR” and “HARTNELL” on their backs. Rudy Giuliani and Spike Lee are going to wear Flyers hats. And MetLife Stadium is going to be called The Spectrum for one night.

11) Don’t forget, the Alumni game in Philly today has been changed to 3 p.m.

Peter – Avery apparently brought his mother and a friend into the Ranger locker room to the ire of Tortorella, who said something to the effect of ‘you have to earn the right to be in the room’ or something.

I’ve always seen Avery as being on the outside of this team. From his mental lapses on the ice to where he sits on the bench(in a folding chair by the backup goalie far away from his team), he just doesn’t seem like a ‘team’ guy so to speak. Kind of seems like he marches to his own beat, which is good sometimes. But others, it creates a distraction that isn’t necessarily conducive to team-building. Maybe I’m wrong, I don’t know. Just a hunch I have, since his overall ability could have been an asset in any number of games since Buffalo.

Watched most of the game last night and this team is playing well. It’s nice to have Dubinsky back after his long slumber. A couple of witers were making a big deal of Richards’ slump. I think it was something like 1 point (or was it 1 goal) in 8 games. All players not named Gretzky go through periods where they don’t score. It happens. It doesn’t mean that it’s time to panic though.

If this “Buffalo Incident” is what was the final straw, it shows that Torts was just looking for a reason to get rid of Sean once and for all. It could have been Sean stepping on the logo, or leaving his locker messy, or forgetting to turn the water off in the shower. Sean was a dead man walking. In this petty little war, Torts wins. Sorry Sean.

Great review, Carp!
What was lost last night in that last minute hoopla is how they utterly dominated the team sitting at #3 in EC. Albeit from the weakest division…But they looked much faster and more skilled. With far superior goaltending.

Kopecky did deserve what he got. It was an idiotic, blindsided sucker punch. Some of those were career ending before. And Rupp did give him enough time to turtle before pummeling him. In fact, I’m sure I heard him say to Kopecky: “Grab your jock. If you need one. It’s Go Tme!”. Let’s see if 24/7 confirms it. :-)

Good Morning ilb, i have a question to you, i assume you were a Number of Times at the Garden to See Games and you may Know how they Operate those Messages on the Garden Vision, do they it only once a Game is it just displaying there or also is called out by the Pa adress announcer, is it during tv Time Outs or in between Periode ???

Can you Imagine that its possible to make a Photo of it from the stands and Sendung it via Email ? :) and you are going to the Game against Florida next Thursday ?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I didnt realize gifts could be given for new years but Sean “walk the cat walk” is gone!!! YES!!! Most overhyped player in Rangers history. I don’t care who you are, there are rules to be followed and if you ignore them and do what you want you pay the price. I wish he wouldnt even go to Hartford to poison any of the kids down there…Can’t we John Mcclean him to Manitoba???

Love this dang team. This is what Detroit has done for years…avoid long losing streaks, everyone follows the same trail and works as one. Nothing fancy just get the job done.

Sorry, Buff, just saw your post. I’ll be at the game Thursday, but I’m not sure how that message thing works. Carp may have a better idea. But I’ll be happy to take a picture and email it to you, if it happens.

I am and always have been an Avery supporter. But first and foremost, my allegiance is to the New York Rangers, and whatever is best for the team, whatever makes the team better, is OK in my book. Right now this team is winning, playing damn good hockey, and is among the top of the league for the first time in a long time. If that’s what we’re going to have with no Sean Avery, then I’m OK with that.

Oh well, i really feared you became an islanderfan:) but when i See Dubi skating around the Florida Defense like a figure skater before His Next Jump easily flipping the Puck in, i would suggest the worst Time is behind him:)

Thats Great News ilb, i have already emailed Carp and MSG to ASK those questions As well but i
Didnt get any answer yet.. I may make a phone Call on Monday to MSG to make a Donation to the Garden of Dreams Fundation in Order to get this Message displayed on the Garden Vision

I think Tortorella as evidenced by his post game comments feels that there is a certain respect for the game that too many players do not have and he feels that not only is Avery a prime example of this, but that happens to be the guy’s strength. He can be helpful and effective but obviously he is pretty replaceable. My biggest concern actually would be that it always appeared to me as though he was pretty close friends with 3 of the most important guys in the room – Richards, Gaborik and Hank. I would assume not, but I hope what happens to him doesn’t adversely effect their play or their relationships witht he coach. Doubt it though.

1st in conference, another good win, why are people still talking about a marginal 4th line player? I understand that people have their favorites regardless of that player’s level of talent, but, this is not the same team that Avery provided a spark to several years ago. He is an unnecessary distraction that could only hurt this team with his presence, and anyone that chants “We Want Avery”, especially now, is a moron and doesn’t understand the game and not a real fan of this team.

It’s true about what happened in buffalo. how you can bench someone because they brought their mother in the locker room is beyond me. as it was the only opportunity for him to see them before christmas. and thats all im going to say about the situation but if this doesnt prove that tortorella has something against avery than i dont know what will.

i mean come the FRK on. you bench someone cause a family member was in the locker room?

Peter – Good points – I think Richards first and foremost came to NY because of a number of factors; money, NYC, Torts, the organization and the spotlight, Sean Avery is much lower on the list.

I agree about Avery – he’s certainly someone you can cheer for. He’s the underdog, he’s made his mistakes, now he deserves the chance to make up for them. Plus he’s done some things as a Ranger that the fans like; his abrasive game vs. the Devils, his fights against Tucker and Richards when he was in Philly, all put into one package and one could see how he can quickly become a fan favorite.

But when I step back and analyze the entire situation there just seems to be something there that we don’t see because we’re not privy to all the information.

Part of being a coach and running a team means that everyone lives up to the same standards on and off the ice; who knows how Avery handles himself within those parameters. He also makes money that counts against the cap, has passed waivers before and for some odd reason Eric Christensen is higher on the depth chart than Avery.

I personally am not a EC fan and would rather see Avery on the roster. My hopes are that Avery passes though waivers, the Rangers make some room on their roster via trades so Staal can come back and Avery can be brought back up. I believe having Avery in the lineup come playoff time will pay dividends.

EC is higher on the depth chart because he conforms to the TEAM concept…Avery is an “I” player…I love that he says he hasnt been able to play “his” game the last 4 years… Really?? Play hard and be a PITA but do it within the “model” of the team…You think if Avery played like Claude (I’m not Mario) Lemieux he would have been sent away? Heck no! CL at least added to his teams in more than one way…

You people complain about a guy who scored 3 goals last year!!! EC contributes more than that!!

J.T. Miller: Watched all three of the USA’s games. Miller is one of only two 18 year olds on the squad. the rest are 19. He started out on the third line without too much ice time. From the start you could see his extreme physicality. He was banging guys all over the place. By yesterday’s game he was playing lots of minutes on the second line and was the man in the slot on the power play. Yesterday he was ferocious with his checks. One hit was so awesome that it brought oohs and ahs from the crowd and even woke up his comatose teammates for a while.

He has real good hockey sense and is usually around the puck. He has a quick release, a slightly above average wrister and a decent slapshot. The best thing is he’s not at all hesitant about shooting the puck.He’s also strong on the puck. He had the primary assist on the first goal with a perfect pass. He was as good as as anyone on the team. He also showed considerable toughness as he had to come off the ice against Finland with what seemed to be a serious and painful leg injury. However he didn’t miss a shift. Same thing yesterday when he came of with a rib or abdominal injury and returned immediately. He still needs to improve his skating as he is now average at best.

i do not understand the Avery infatuation but when it comes to Avery versus EC, I think Avery at 3 goals this year actually is more valuable then EC. This is like arguing over the 51st player on a football team, not that important.

I was at the game last night. Sitting in the balcony, naturally. Hags early goal seemed to take the wind out of the Panther fans, and set the tone for the first period. It seemed that at least 15 – 20% of the crowd were Rangers fans judging by the number of Ranger sweaters I could see.

There were a few traditional Potvin chants, and in the 3rd period, a Beat the Flyers chant, which seemed to confuse some Panther fans sitting nearby. They were just clueless, I guess.

The game went down hill for the Rangers after the 1st period. It seemed like the Panthers were on a continuous power play at times due to the Rangers inability to clear the puck (caused by a lack of hitting, IMO). The Panthers out-shot the Rangers in the 2nd and 3rd periods. I think it was due, in part, to the dreaded 3 goal lead let-down.

Standings: last year after 36 games – 42 points. This year after 36 games – 50 points. Looking good for the post-season.

I wonder how the Panthers are doing so well in the standing, seeing how they play.

Speaking of Ranger prospects, how about Michael St. Croix, their fourth rounder in this year’s draft. After a slow start he’s now tied for fourth in scoring in the WHL and he’s getting better as the season progresses. From The Prospect Park: “In 11 games in December St. Croix went 8-16-24, scoring two or more points in eight of the games. For the season, St. Croix is now 22-38-60 in just 38 games as he is now running away with the Ranger’s prospect scoring title.”

Too bad he wasn’t extended an invitation to try out for Canada’s junior team. Kreider, Miller, St. Croix, Thomas and McIlrath is a nice portfolio.

Ilb and Chopper, i may try also contacting Jim Cerny from the Rangers As well As Joe Tolleson the Pa announcer of the Garden, two old friends of Mine of the early Stages of NHL live when they were Hosts of this Show and i Started emailing questions from over here … But its Not easy find out their emailadresses and they probably busy cause of the Winter Classic…

I am sorry i am so obsessed to get this Thing Done, but She is a very Nice Person and it would mean the World for me a Personal messAge from the World famos Arena :)

St Croix’ been on fire. What’s interesting too is if you look at OHL scoring,
sandwiched between Yogan and Thomas is Andy Bathgate’s grandson, whom the Pens drafted and let go. He’s had shoulder problems and Im not sure if he’s signed but might be worth a look. Good posts Lowell.

Like Carp is saying, adding the old Dubinsky is like acquiring a 20-goal scorer for nothing.

The idea of Staal returning to this defense is getting really exciting.

Subtracting SA and hopefully soon EC starts to round out this team, closer to what it can be.

Well, this is right down my mother-bitchin’ alley, this crucifying of Avery for bringing his mother and someone else into the locker room.

And first, may I say that it was wrong on Avery’s part and the coach is/was right, here, to reprimand the player and not let it go unpunished. But see, where I am ticked about this is where there is a “politically correct” precedent to this apostasy of bringing an unwelcome outsider into a profession male athlete’s locker room which was feted and and supported, albeit, in another sport.

Back in the early 90’s, I am guessing it was, a female reporter was allowed into the New England Patriots locker room, all the way into the private quarters where the players dress and undress, down to their buffs. A Patriot player (I can’t remember his name), loudly and publicly objected to this as being contrary to the tenets of modesty and his Christian belief system and family values as a married man. That MFSOB Paul Tagliabue, kissing the N.O.W.’s ass, as he was want to do, instead of taking a stand in support of the right to privacy and decency values of his players (well, some of his players), caved-in to the sleaze-ball trend of our times to always defer to the lowest common denominator, and you know the rest, we now have a society completely stripped of any and all family and Christian values, down to the desecration of the societal foundational value of traditional and moral marriage, itself.

Don’t know about you but I could not find ONE, SINGLE Chrismas carol played on any radio station this year. No Silent Night, no Oh Little Town of Bethlehem, no Away In A Manger, etc. Nothing! Just the usual tiresome secular “Rockin Around The Christmas Tree” fluff.

My point is that Sean Avery has major relationship and communications problems with people because he is cut from the old school values, the opposite of a P.C. “Renaisssance Man.” His sense of individuality and outlandish “style” for lack of a better word, has both made him a household name, while undermining at least a decent-level professional hockey career he had forged for himself.

Not to call the coach a hypocrite, but I can’t help wonder what he would have done if another Ranger player, say, Gaborik, had done the same thing? Does he sit Gaborik for 15 games and then wave goodbye? And what if a Ranger player had brought a “manlove” friend into the locker room, now you are bucking the ACLU with any kind of reprimand or disciplinr.

So that when what Sean did was outside the vested interests of the ACLU, NAMABLA, and/or the N.O.W., he was foredoomed to exile. Do I detest the double-standard in our society which now openly punishes and criminalizes, not just censures, anything which is suggestive of family values? You bet, and I have lived long enough to see this country fall into a spiritual sewer, whereas at one time decency and adhering to the tenets of NORMALCY were celebrated social values.

Sean was wrong but the over-kill reaction to his mistake in judgment, to me, further indicts our sick, psychopathic society for what it is – one big trash barrel culture.

Kopecky didn’t like being crossed checked while parking in front of the net? I have no problem with him not being happy about that. So act like a mensch. drop your gloves and challenge MDZ to a fight. That sucker punch was bullsh–! So glad that Rupp punched him in his face. He deserved it. Thought the Rangers got outplayed the last 2 periods, but good teams hold on and win games like that. I am so thrilled with this team. Young and hungry. A pleasure to watch. Loyal ranger fans who watched the dreck teams post 1997 for many years really deserve a team like this!

stuart a. By munchkin I think you mean, is he a smurf? 5:11 181 is he’s how he’s listed. Those are old numbers and considering he won’t be 19 until April, you can assume size will not be as issue.

Fogarty has really impressed Jess at the Prospect Park. A big tough two way Center who plays in all situations and whose coach called him “the hardest working player on the team”. Not too bad for a guy on by far the best team in the league. It’ll be interesting to see how he does at Notre Dame next year.

I’m not saying EC should be on the team I just said he conforms to the team rules\policies…thats what makes him more important than the “model”…I hope one of the kids takes his spot next season…For some reason people are attracted to “bad boys” and thats fine if they are useful…”model” is NOT useful,.

Another thing about the outstanding Ranger prospects is if one of the rebuilding teams like Anaheim or Columbus is willing to part with Ryan or Nash, they are going to want high quality prospects in return.

Sorry I can’t be more specific about the Buffalo incident because I wasn’t there. But enough people know about it, and I’m quite surprised that more hasn’t been written about it. Two things I can say. 1) I was more than him bringing his mom into the room and 2) It probably wouldn’t have gotten any other player kicked off the team. He was headed that way anyway, and this was the last straw.

I’ve said many times, I think Avery is a better player than Wolski or Christensen, especially for this team. And I do not deny for a minute that the coach’s personal feelings played a huge part in this decision. But the coach also has some reason to not want a non-comformist (the only NHL forward who doesn’t sit with his linemates on the bench between shifts) on a team that’s really built on unity and all-for-one-ness.

But I’m quite certain that there will be Avery chants all season at MSG now.

I’m forbidden from posting anything non-hockey apparently, so I’ll leave most of Boom Boom’s latest sermon alone, but I’ll say I’m amused by the contradiction of a thinly-disguised disgust at what are apparently called “man love friends” in the same breath as showing admiration for a player who has very publicly been an advocate for same-sex marriage (for the avoidance of doubt, not a position I have a problem with whatsoever) and presumably has a few friends who have “man love friends”.

Mr. Delaware, if Orr collects we won’t see half the money. Some of which will be spent on large quantities of B&Js.

Dore, no idea on your cousin Andre.

Boom Boom, that’s pretty deep. I don’t even know where to begin. But I totally miss the connection between that sermon and the Avery-Tortorella disconnect. in fact, Avery sometimes (often) sides with the P.C., doesn’t he?

…the issue is no longer Sean Avery…the issue is, are NYR better off with “Torts” as head coach AND GM, which he clearly is now…personally, I’m a bit surprised that Sather acquiesced to “Torts” regarding Avery…Sather has not bee submissive to my knowledge on many occasions…I loathe “Torts”—cannot stand him…but I want whats best for NYR…so now we’ll see if the new HC and GM of NYR actually wins in the playoffs at some point to support his new found increased roles and responsibilities…

Carp i Know them but i Cant Contact them because i try to find out their Email adresses for two hours but to no avail.. I think the Best is to wait until Monday to make a phone Call to MSG if they don’t answer my Email….

Once again is Monday a Public Holiday that i can reach Someone there ?

Watched 24/7 episodes 2 & 3 last night and continue to be amazed how little an NHL coach is involved with offensive strategy. Probably getting a very small sample size (especially practice time) and HBO likes the rah rah segments more that in-game strategy (if they are even allowed to show it).

Would much rather see more hockey related footage as the off ice stuff seems a little contrived. Maybe B Rich is done with NYC Holiday Party circuit and will begin to skate like he did last night? All that wine, women, and song seemed to affect him.

When compared to other major sports, the hockey players are much more easy to relate to.

Carp, “Torts” has done well to this point yes…and I’d like to think that eventually he may even lead them to winning in the playoffs too…but also to this point, the NYR results over his tenure here have been quite average at best…seems strange to me that given those results/lack thereof, that Sather is giving “Torts’ more responsibility/louder voice, etc…maybe the silver lining, to me and others who also have disdain for Sather, is that Sather is slowly but surely stepping away from decision making with NYR—do you have a feel for whether or not Sather is riding off into the sunset?…thanks Carp.

thats another thing…I know Ranger fans that cant stand Torts? I’m sorry can someone explain why? He is a no nonsense coach, maybe you dont like his attitude but who else you want? The man has won a cup and he has this team on the right path…want to go back to the muckler, bergeron,Espo and the list can go on days?? Look at the patience the Steelers have with their coaches…this guy wants it done the right way and we are headed that way…he has even brought stability to Slats..Gone are the days of signing someone because of what they did, now we have the players that are going to do it for this team and not take all the $$$ to live at the country club…He’s got a big fan here…not sure what more you people want…maybe we can fire Torts and hire avery to be coach…

I don’t understand the dislike of Torts at all….I could see the dislike of the hyena aka Renney, but not Torts…he is the perfect coach for a NY team, and he has been great with our kids..MDZ seems give the coach a lot of credit you can’t neglect that fact.

This is an interesting point. You can be P.C. as Sean is in some respects, but the litmus test in life and society these days is that you must ALWAYS be P.C. in your actions, as well, or pay the price. There is no forgiveness in the P.C. world, you conform to the new “norm” or they will make you pay – hell, they will destroy you. This is what they do to lives and careers which fall outside their politics and social boundaries.

Listening to the way Torts talks about Callahan and watching them interact really helped me understand why Torts feels the way he does about Avery.
Torts trusts Cally and respects him because, as he said, Cally “respects the game.”. Avery is the opposite of that, and I can imagine that Avery didn’t fit in well with the culture in the locker room, which Torts and Cally establish, for the most part.

When Artie did the jackwagon goal celebration, Avery walked into the locker room and smirked his approval at Artie. Cally walked in, and with a look made Artie look sheepish. Cally respects the game, for Avery it is a show to promote himself.

I liked Avery when he first became a Ranger, but to have someone on the team who so goes against the tone that has been set just isn’t going to work. I’ll take Cally’s work ethic and attitude over what Avery brings to the table ten times out of ten.

Carp, your game reviews are the best! You always seem to nail the most salient points of the game, which always has me nodding in agreement as I’m reading it.

#1 62 is his number? I thought it was the speedometer attached to his jersey.

#4 I agree, so can we stop talking about what young prospects to trade for some close to, if not already there, over-the-hill veteran. Or even for guys like Nash or Ryan who I suspect are not very motivated players; just my feeling. This team is successful because of its make-up and chemistry; if that’s not apparent, i don’t know what is. Team defense has been incredible and should be even moreso when Staal and Sauer get back, which hopefully they will. Don’t mess with success!